Cold Rescue
by DemonUntilDeath
Summary: Kurama is mysteriously kidnapped by a new demon, one who wants something the Tentei stole. Now, lost in the frozen lands of the koorimes, someone will have to help him before he freezes to death. Warning: yaoi
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Let's see, I must say I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. If I did, Hiei would be in Kurama's arms, where he belongs, Keiko would not be with Yusuke (We don't like her much) and the series would **not **have ended. But, as most can see, I clearly don't own the series. (and those of you who can't see…should pro'lly be in an asylum O.O...or get glasses .)

Note: Uh…I don't think I have anything to say…

Kit: So, why exactly did you bother putting a note?

Me: I don't know why…There seems to be a reason…hmmm…wonder what that could be…

Kit: Arghh! You are hopeless!

Me: Really? You think so? Hmmm…could be…

Kit: -groans and starts hitting her head against table-

Thud-

Thud-

Thud-

Me: Uh…that looks somewhat painful…

This story is slightly old...I've been meaning to post it for a while...

Oooh, wanna know something funny? Since my name's DemonUntilDeath, and you know how people abrieviate their names (Like SaintMe SM) well, my abreviated name is DUD...ahahahahha...that's alright, my other name on is EvenDemonsDream...EDD...I'm a **girl**...hahahahah...okay, not funny anymore.

o-o-o-o-o-o-

Cold Rescue

Chapter 1

o-o-o-o-o-o-

The midnight darkness coated the snowy field in a blanket of frosty blackness. No one was around to see the lone figure walk silently through the knee-high snow, his arms wrapped around his body in a futile attempt to keep warm.

The figure shivered as the wind picked up and he ran his long hands up and down his freezing skin. Chains were hanging from cuffs that adorned his red, bleeding wrists. The cold metal clinked against his equaling freezing skin.

His simple clothes were not meant for such extreme temperatures and were becoming stiff as they froze slowly. Silky red hair blew across his face as the wind once again blew over the frozen field. Clear green eyes looked tiredly ahead, unable to see anything but the pitch-black horizon rising off of the dull white snow.

Kurama dropped to his knees, cold penetrating his every bone. His crystal, forest green eyes slid closed as he collapsed in the freezing snow.

_-Earlier ; Makai – near the Koorime lands-_

DUD: AHHHH!

_-Pause...No, I'm not near the Koorime Lands...-_

Kit: AHHH! -Sits up breathing heavily and clutching chest- Don't. Do. That!

DUD: I just remembered why I put that note there!

Kit: Uh….now?

DUD: Yep, sorry, but the earlier sign made me remember.

Kit: Uh…how?

DUD: This is how. Okay, just a warning to all you people: This fic has a really weird order to it. It pretty much jumps around…a lot…but I'll try to keep it from getting too confusing. Actually, that might be somewhat hard cuz there will be things that are mentioned that haven't been explained yet. For example

Kurama pressed his hands to his pierced stomach. The blood had slowed in the coldness but the wound was still seeping the red liquid.

Something like that. See, later, I'll explain how he got that wound. Might get a bit confusing…I'll try my best, but it is supposed to be that way. Well, okay…that should be it…

Kit: Uh…-Goes back to banging her head-

Thud-

Thud-

Thud-

DUD: O.O Shrug

-_As I said before: Earlier ; Makai – near the Koorime lands_-

DUD: Oh! Oh! Oh! Wait!

Kit: Now what?

DUD: Terribly sorry, but there was another reason for the note to be there. Quick warning: THIS STORY IS YAOI! NOTHING MUCH BUT DEFINITELY SHOUNEN-AI. YOU NO LIKE, YOU NO READ. Kay? Good. On with the story!

Kit: Uh…Turns to bang head on table but finds a pillow duct taped to that part of the table.

DUD: Hehehe, sorry, can't have you loosing all your brain cells on me! Duct tape fixes all!

Lia-sensei: Poofs into room I came!

DUD: I saw!

Both: I duct Taped!

Kit: You. People. Have. Problems.

_-As I said before before: Earlier ; Makai – near the Koorime Lands-_

"Give me the damn amulet, Kitsune!" the pale-skinned demon screamed. Kurama continued staring ahead, ignoring the demon just to tick him off. It worked as the black-haired demon leaned forward and slapped the chained fox, the force carrying his cheek into the cold ice wall behind him.

Kurama slowly turned his head back to stare at the demon who was turning red with anger. The fox said nothing as he just glared at the demon. His cheek stung painfully but he ignored that too.

"There'll be blood next if you don't give me back my amulet!" the demon yelled again but got no reaction from the fox. Growing impatient, the demon reached out and grabbed the silver chain that rest around the fox's neck.

Dangling from the chain was an oval, purple gem the size of Kurama's thumb. It was encircled with silver that hooked up to the chain in an elegant design of ice crystals and flames. (A/N: No, the design has nothing to do with Hiei. Just thought I'd clear that up ahead of time .)

Pulling out a dagger, he tried to slice the chain off the kitsune's neck, not noticing nor caring as the dagger drew close the Kurama's pale skin. The chain remained whole as sparks flew off the dagger and the blade chipped, a small chunk falling to the iced floor with an audible "chink." Kurama held back a hiss as the sparks landed on his pale flesh.

"It will not break, no matter how many times you slice at it. I'd have thought you'd realize that after you ruined your other blade, Jirinti," Kurama taunted, smirking slightly despite the soreness of the skin on his neck, which now had a bright red hue as the chain continued to irritate his skin.

"Shut up!" Jirinti yelled as he backhanded the fox's cheek. Before the kitsune had time to react, the demon gripped his chin painfully tight and pulled his head back, forcing Kurama to look up into the clear blue eyes of Jirinti.

"Take it off now! Do it before I have to slice your pretty little head off!" Jirinti screamed and the Kitsune closed his eyes as his heightened senses reeled at the loudness.

"I can't," he spoke. Jirinti's eyes grew cold.

"What?" His voice was icy cold.

"I can't," Kurama repeated calmly, but his voice was weaved with an icy coldness. "You need a key. Clearly, I don't have it."

Indeed, the fox did not have the key that unlocked the precious artifact around his neck. Koenma had decided to separate the two so that if the demon tried to reclaim the stolen object, he would only be able to claim one half of what he would need to release the power within the amulet.

It only figures that the part that Jirinti knew about was the part around Kurama's neck. And since attempting to take it off at the sight of the kidnapping had not worked, Jirinti had one choice: take the fox with him.

"Fine," the black-haired demon spat out as he drew close to the fox, releasing his chin. Kurama drew back until he was pressed against the freezing wall behind him, his loose Chinese-style tunic keeping none of the cold away from his body.

The demon placed the chipped dagger blade against the fox's cheek. He tilted it slightly, enjoying the thin line of red that appeared beneath it. A small trail of blood trickled down the kitsune's cheek. "I'll be back with that Key. Don't go anywhere."

He turned to leave the underground ice cave he had dragged the wounded fox to. Kurama stood against the wall as he watched him go. The demon gave one last look towards his captive before vanishing up the ice stairs leading to the outside world.

The fox sagged against the chains. The wound he had obtained to his stomach was still bleeding; he could feel it. The cuffs around his wrists were rubbing his skin raw and smearing lines of blood were already running down his arms. He pulled futilely on the chains that connected the cuffs on his wrists to the hooks in the wall. They did not give way, as he had expected them not to.

Fiery pain shot through his midsection as he tested his stomach muscles, trying to see how much damage had been done. The pain shot quickly through the rest of his body and straight to his head, increasing the already pounding headache.

A groan sounded from the kitsune's lips and he sagged more against the chains. Under Jirinti's ki, the hook in the wall slid down with Kurama's motion, allowing the fox to slide into a sitting position on the ground. The ice immediately hardened again, ending any hope of pulling away while the ice was weak.

Kurama leaned his head down on his chest, his brilliant green eyes closing as his mind searched for any way out of the predicament. He slowly fell into a fitful sleep as his brain found no solution to his current problem.

_-Little Later ; Ningenkai – Some forest Somewhere...yeah...good description-_

Yusuke charged the demon, aiming a punch for his lower chest. The pale-skinned, S-class easily dodged and the raven-haired teen's fist slammed into a rough-barked tree. Blood slowly began to seep over his knuckles as he pulled his hand back, wincing.

"Urameshi!" Kuwabara screamed as he charged the demon, swinging his sword wildly. Black hair flew around the pale demon's face as he dodged around every swing with the grace that few demons even possess.

A backhanded slap sent the orange-haired teen flying past Hiei (who dodged the oncoming body) and straight into a tree. The sickening crunch of bones breaking sounded through the woods.

Hiei turned to face the demon. "Jirinti, you bastard!" he screamed as he drew his katana quicker than the eye could see and charged the demon. Jirinti moved away from every slice, dodging at an almost equal speed to the fire demon.

The sanjiyan swung lightning fast and, on each swing, he almost hit the bastard. Jirinti smiled as Hiei missed his neck by mere inches and he took another step backwards.

"Aww, Hiei, are you mad at me for stealing away your little fox?" he taunted the fire demon as he dodged the attacks, which grew more furious by the moment.

"Where. Is. He!" Hiei yelled as he sliced with his katana, finally making a hit. The sword sliced through Jirinti's side, cutting through an inch of the demon's pale skin. His clear blue eyes closed momentarily before opening in a look of slight shock and pain.

The fire demon smirked as he backed away, pulling the sword with him. He raised it to finish the job but stopped at Jirinti's maniacal grin.

"What in Hell's name is so funny, Kisama?" Hiei growled as he paused in his attack, sword still raised menacingly.

"If you kill me, little Hiei, you'll never find Kurama…Especially with him warded and wounded like he is…" Jirinti smirked as the fire demon barely held down his desire to sever the demon's head from the rest of his body.

"No, you would never find him." The pale demon took a step towards Hiei, who kept his defense up but did not attack. He took another step. "You have no other choice but to give me the ke-"

Jirinti never finished as he was shoved forward by Yusuke's large shot of spirit gun. The demon collapsed as the energy pushed him into the ground, burning the skin on his back slightly before dissipating.

"No! Yusuke, he's the only one who knows where Kurama is!" Hiei screamed as he ran over to the limp body on the ground.

"Relax, Hiei. I only knocked him out. I know that we need him alive. Come on, I'll get him while you go find Kuwabara. We'll get this guy in the Rekai prisons and question him when he wakes up."

"Hn. Fine." Hiei turned and walked off, not looking back as he flitted off to find the Fool. Yusuke turned back to the body on the ground before him.

"He's gonna have one hell of a headache, though."

_-Same Time ; Makai – near the Koorime Island-_

Kurama shivered again as his head continued to ache. The darkness around him was anything but comforting and he stood silently in the middle of it all, not moving. He shivered again and a small patch of light disturbed the blanket of darkness.

Another shot through the black cover as another shiver ripped through the fox's body. Kurama could tell he was waking up and, as he closed his eyes in the darkness, he opened them up to the familiar ice cave.

Kurama groaned as another wave of shivers, accompanied by a painful pounding in his head, racked his weakened body. If he did not get out of the cold soon, his human body was sure to catch pneumonia or possibly undergo hypothermia.

The fox tried to stand up, the chains once again adjusting as he managed to stand weakly on his feet, pain shooting though his midsection yet again. The kitsune looked around at his bleak surroundings, finding nothing different from the last time he had checked for a way out.

Kurama weakly pulled against the chains, leaning forward painfully and merely pulling with his own weight. His strength was dwindling to the point where he couldn't do much more.

Suddenly, there was a crack behind him, in the ice. Before he could balance himself, the hooks suddenly came loose and Kurama face-planted onto the hard snow beneath him.

Thud-

"…Ow…"

He had not been prepared enough to catch himself and he lay on the floor, shivering in the cold and moaning from the pain such an impact had caused on his wounds.

"What…the…" Kurama groaned. Jirinti must have been killed... Which meant…no one knew where he was.

Several seconds after this shocking recognition, he pushed himself off the ground and into a standing position. Shaking from the cold and his own weakening body, he moved slowly towards the stairs.

Every step seemed like a million and hours seemingly passed before he reached the outside. Blackness wrapped around the snowy world and a light snowfall was coming down. He stood in the small cave entrance, which led to the stairway down. It was slightly warmer here as the walls were made of rock, not ice.

He knew that his teammates must have defeated Jirinti, that's why the hooks gave way. Without his ki, they were not meant to stay in the ice. However, this also meant that no one knew where he was, and his body could not stand the temperatures of the small semi-cave that lingered over him nor the cave below.

He would have to venture out in the cold and take his chances. Hopefully he would stumble upon a town. Even as he watched, the snow seemed to lighten up and the number of snowflakes began to decrease.

"Somebody up there loves me…" he whispered as he thanked his fox god, Inari.

Kurama pressed his hands to his pierced stomach. The blood had slowed in the coldness but the wound was still seeping the red liquid. The wound would take too much energy to heal here. He needed as much of that as he could reserve to keep him warm.

Sighing, he stumbled out into the snow, trailing the chains from his wrists lightly behind him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

DUD: WEEEEEE! Now wasn't that fun!

Audience: O.O -Silence-

DUD: Hn. Party Poopers!

Kit: I….am SO FREAKIN LOST!

DUD: Sigh…Okay, those of you who are lost, raise your hand.

Several dozen hands go up-

DUD: That's funny…I remember only letting three people read this story…Hmm shrug

Alright! Basically, Kurama has this amulet, (yes, it will be explained in the next chapter…or maybe the one after that…), Jirinti is a demon that stole the amulet in the first place. But the tentai stole it back. How Kurama's got an irremovable magic artifact around his neck, that too will be in further chapters. Anways, here's the story line so far.

Jirinti Stole amulet.

Tentai stole it back

Kurama got it stuck on his neck (Heheh, funny…actually, but how it really happens isn't…but o well!)

One of the other tentai has the other half

Jirinti kidnaps Kurama, not knowing there's a key until later

Jirinti goes after Tentai

Tentai knock him unconscious

Kurama's freed but stuck in sub-zero temps. In the middle of nowhere near the koorimes.

He collapses

and that's the story so far.

DUD: Now, why I put it in such a confusing order…hmmm….that's a good question…

Audience: -Face vault-

DUD: Oh…I know…I had this crazy idea for a story at 1:30 in the morning, decided to start writing it, began with the wrong part, and decided to try a new, confusing style of writing to see how lost we can get the readers.

DUD: Anyhoo! Maybe I should have written it normally but this was fun. O well, it might have one of those fun, unsuspecting loops in it where the whole story suddenly makes sense…kinda like the ending of the Sixth Sense…hehehe…o well…

Kit: Please review. Even if all you say is… "Interesting plot…YOU LOST ME WITH THE FREAKIN ORDER!"

DUD: Yeah, maybe if I get enough of those, I'll change the whole order of the story just to make sense…Hmmm. Yawn O well, I'll deal with it tomorrow.

Kit: shaking head and looking for a hard surface to bang it against but finding every inch of every table and wall is duct taped with pillows

DUD: Yawn I'm going to bed now.

(\O.O/) Night peoples (\O.O/)


	2. Chapter 2

Hi!

Me: Weeeeeee! I'm back!

Kit: little girl's voice They're ba-ack!

Shadow: I hated that movie. The first one was so good but the second sucked majorly!

Me: Yeah, yeah.

Kit: Anyways, we decided to keep this story going, even if no one else likes it or can understand it.

Me: yeah, but we decided to make the order a bit less confusing.

Shadow: yeah, you might actually get it now.

Kit: But no guarantees.

Me: Of course not.

Shadow: Now on to the story.

Me: or something like that.

Shadow: Aren't we forgetting something?

Me: -rushed voice- Ohyeah,Iownnothing.

Kit: Do Disclaimers still count even if the readers can't actually read them?

.-.-.-.-.-

_**Cold Rescue**_

**Chapter 2**

.-.-.-.-.-

Ever since Miyuki was old enough to walk, she had always ventured away from the koorime village. Disregarding what the elders told her, she would wander off in search of a way to the surrounding lands far beyond the borders of her people. Fifteen years later had only given her more strength and confidence to wander farther.

And that's what had Miyuki outside in the cold weather that day. The young ice maiden was walking among the wide, snow-covered plains just outside her peoples village. She walked slowly across the cold ground, occasionally dancing in the falling snow.

It was doing this, while playfully enjoying her freedom and youth, that she stumbled across the half buried body. Her eyes opened wide and she took an unconscious step back, barely stopping herself from screaming in shock.

"Oh by the Gods!" she whispered as she gathered herself together and bent down hastily. Using her hands, she quickly began sweeping the snow away from him. He was half buried in the ground and it took a long time for her to dig him up.

Carefully, she turned him over and pulled his upper body against her kneeling form. Long red hair, frozen and stiff with the cold, clung to his white skin and clothes. He was really rather beautiful. Pressing the back of her hand to his cheek, she prayed that he was still alive.

The man was freezing; she didn't need to feel his icy skin to know that. Quickly, she laid him back down upon the snowy ground and pressed her ear against his cold, stiff clothes. A sigh of relief passed her lips as she heard the slow yet rhythmic beating of his heart.

Smiling grimly, she quickly removed her warm, white rabbit cloak and wrapped his cold body in it. Gently, she heaved the body up and cradled it to her own warm one.

"Hold on, sir," she whispered quietly as she headed slowly back to her village.

.-.-.-.-.-

"Where is he?"

The scream echoed through the Rekai prison for the umpteenth time in the last five minutes. A loud thud and the crack of breaking concrete, not to mention bones, followed soon after.

"Answer me!" Hiei screamed as he pulled Jirinti's head and torso back out of the wall, which he had just slammed the demon into. His small hands were gripped tightly in the ice demon's shirt as he shook Jirinti back and forth.

Yusuke and Kuwabara were both leaning against the wall, watching as Hiei banged the demon back and forth. Quickly, they glanced at each other to share a short, worried look.

"Hiei…" Yusuke began as he stepped away from the wall and placed his hand lightly on the fire demon's shoulder.

"Shut up!" said youkai screamed out and shook Jirinti harder. Yusuke stepped back. "TELL ME WHERE KURAMA IS!"

"Hehehe, why should I tell you?" Jirinti smirked, his cheek swollen from Hiei's punches. "Give me one good reason."

"Alright, then," Hiei whispered menacingly. "Tell me where my fox is, or I swear by the time I'm done with you, you'll wish you were dead!"

"Just try and do your worst," Jirinti answered with another smirk. Hiei growled and let go of the ice demon, who stumbled back into the wall.

Hiei raised his right arm up to his forehead and tore off his jagan. Yusuke's eyes opened wide. The fire demon's third eye opened and emitted its violet glow. Slowly closing his own red eyes, he allowed the glow to flow over him.

Jirinti let out a scream as Hiei entered his mind rather painfully. Kuwabara and Yusuke glanced at each other in worried shock. They rushed towards Hiei who just shook his head.

"Don't!" Hiei shouted as Yusuke reached out to grab the fire demon. Yusuke pulled back slightly and Kuwabara stopped yet again.

"Shrimp…" Kuwabara backed off slightly with Yusuke. But only after a few seconds had passed, Hiei turned away and replaced his jagan. Yet Jirinti continued to scream.

"Let's go…I know where Kurama is," Hiei said in a voice dark and angered. He walked past Yusuke and Kuwabara and stepped out of the cell door. The two teens glanced back at Jirinti, who's screams were fading but his eyes continued to hold immense pain. Turning back, they quickly caught up to Hiei.

.-.-.-.-.-

There existed only darkness around him. Waves of darkness moving gently around him, swiftly sweeping in and out as sands do in the winds of a dessert.

Shifting times and sweeping waters, hollow airs wrapping around, melding with the darkness, seducing him with the gentle comfort of anything he wanted. There was nothing, and everything; nothing to worry about, everything to forget about.

Everything except a small, quiet voice, like a whisper on the wind or the call of a loved on. Nothing more than a simple reminder of everything that was ever good in the world.

The voice grew softer, portraying kindness none had heard, showing love none had seen. And quite suddenly, that darkness seemed a lot less comforting and much more evil. A seductive whisper colder than ice.

Kurama moaned slightly as he slowly woke from his cold, heavy sleep. His muscles ached with just the thought of moving them. Groaning softly he forced himself to try and move, but all that resulted was the beginnings of a skull-splitting headache.

He opened his eyes slowly and nothing but blurred images came to his eyes. He blinked, trying to make out the blur of browns, blues, and whites. As his vision began to clear, he could make out the once blurred white and blue blob above him as a young girl.

She was staring at him with large, worried, teal eyes. Extremely pale skin, the color of snow, adorned what of her that wasn't covered by the soft, cottony folds of her dark teal kimono, cherry blossoms so newly formed they were white was hand sewn all up the left side. Her straight, dark aqua hair was tied up in a high ponytail with long strands hanging loose around her chin and forehead.

"Hey, 'bout time you woke up, Sleepyhead!" she spoke in a voice that reminded him someone, someone sweet and innocent. Only, he couldn't seem to remember, like his memory was trapped behind the hazy fog that clouded through his mind.

She gave a light laugh that was like the soft ringing of bells at his strange, perplexed look. Through his hazy mind, which was working about as well as a computer with no electricity, he knew there was something that this similarity to a memory should spark in his mind, but he couldn't remember. Pain shot through his skull as he tried to dig further down, though. There was something to fear about this girl.

"Whe…where am I?" Kurama asked, his voice slightly hoarse. He blinked slightly as he turned his head to look to his side, headache pounding at full force.

He was in a small room, no bigger than his bedroom back in the Ningenkai. The walls all about him were built of pure ice, the rough furs and skins of animals littering the room added texture. Draped across one portion of the far wall was a thick patch of fur, hanging as a door to keep in the warmth.

The ground was covered in rugs made of the skins of large animals, the soft browns and grays of the fur looked welcoming. In the center of these, where they split apart to reveal a large pit dug into the wooden floor, a fire burned warmly, slowly clearing the haze of Kurama's mind.

"You're in the house of Kiraniri, in the land of the Koorimes."

"Koorimes!" Kurama shouted out, but with his horse voice, it wasn't much of a shout. The sudden realization as to who this girl reminded him of shot through his system like water throw on his face.

Yukina. A koorime. Koorimes that would kill him if they knew that he was lovers with the Forbidden Child.

Immediately, his smarter tactics still somewhat hazed and dulled by the coldness and frozen mind, he let instincts take over and he shot up. His arms trying to push the girl away and climb up, he fought to get away from the koorime girl. Only, along with his mind, his body seemed frozen by the cold darkness that had been recently wrapped around him.

"No, no, no…Stop already!" the girl shouted as she tried to push him back down. The scream brought some amount of his senses back and he realized that he was in no condition to fight. In fact, his headache was pounding so hard he could hardly see; his eyes hurt. Kurama slowly relaxed back down onto the furs he had been laid on.

"Calm down, I'm not going to hurt you!" she said exasperatedly. The fox stared at her for a few seconds, his eyes still wide before he settled back with no expression upon his face.

_'They…I can't tell them who I am…If they know that I…if they know that I love Hiei…They'll kill me…but only after they…only after they kill him,' _he whispered to himself.

"That's better. Now…My name is Kiraniri Miyuki.

"Miyuki?" Kurama repeated softly and the sweet girl nodded. "Ho-How did I get here, Kiraniri-san?"

"I found you," she answered innocently, a soft and sympathetic smile on her face, her heart warmed at his politeness. "You were lying in the snow not far from here."

"Yes…that's right…Jirini!" Kurama muttered to himself as his memory slowly returned to him, flashes of his kidnapping coming back to him. He closed his eyes as the images of that icy prison flowed through his mind.

"Well…you were half dead when I got you back here, so you'd better stay put for now. You have a lot of strength to regain," Miyuki ordered as she stood up. "I'll be back in a little while, you just rest."

"Wait…" Kurama whispered, even as his eyes slowly drooped. "How did I get to the Koorime Island? I was…I was in a field…"

Miyuki frowned at the young man. "Well, I don't know how you got on the island, but I just found you in the Yukiora snow fields outside the borders of this village.

"But don't worry about it right now," she continued. "You need rest, so sleep."

Kurama could only nod as his eyes slowly dropped.

.-.-.-.-.-

Alrighty! Congratulations on surviving the second chapter. Hope it wasn't too painful.

Author Notes 

…_voice grew softer, portraying kindness none had heard, showing love none had seen…_ If anyone can actually tell me what that means, I give you a cyber cookie.

…_My name is Kiraniri Miyuki…_ In Japan names are read last name and then surname. I'm going on the impulse that Makai is a similar social build in that regard. So her first name is Miyuki, and Kurama called her Kiraniri-san because referring to someone by first name means that you're good friends, or so that's how I understand it. I could be wrong, though.

Alright, please review, if you'd be so kind!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: Hey, I really don't have to keep doing this do I?

**Notes**: Sorry this chapter took so long to get out! It was a large hassle, especially since I have no major plan for this, and any idea where it is going is sketchy at best.

So just bear with me, please.

Oh, and thank you all for reading and reviewing!

-.o -.o -.o (ooh, look, creepy Cyclopes thingies…-.-')

**_Cold Rescue_**

**Chapter 3**

-.-.-.-.-.-

Kurama walked silently across the bearskin rugs and other pelts that covered the ground. He was wrapped in the large, white skin of an unidentifiable creature, the fur having been neatly shaved off.

Although his muscles still ached, and he was still somewhat exhausted, Kurama new that the longer he stayed, the shorter amount of time he had to escape; the shorter amount of time until the rest of the Koorimes realized Miyuki had hidden him.

Yes, he had deducted from what he knew of the koorimes that he was obviously a secret to the rest of them. Men weren't allowed on the island. So basically, he was about as good as dead.

So leaving took priority over sore muscles and tiredness. He could live with those. His stomach muscles were what was bothering him most, however. He had noticed the instant he had awoken once again that his stomach had been healed somewhat.

Not to mention that his shirt and shoes had been missing.

Using subconscious stealth, he reached the single opening in the room's walls, covered by the thickest patch of fur in the room. Coldness was slowly blowing around the edges of the skin, emanating from the doorway.

Bracing himself from the wintry air he knew was beyond that door, he pulled back the fur door. Air colder than any he had yet to feel in his entire existence hit him like a brick wall to the face.

His skin began to sting as if millions of needles decided to continuously hack at his skin. Green eyes began to sting slightly at the new onslaught of temperature and he blinked, water creating a glossy cover over his eyes.

He pulled the skin around him tighter as he stepped into a second room. The room was considerably larger than his own, the high vaulted ceilings at least twelve feet tall, and the smooth ice walls themselves extending out a good thirty feet to form a circular cavern.

The center had a smoothly carved pit dug out of the ice, but instead of the fire that had been in his room, there was a beautifully ornamental pedestal upon which sat a small, diamond shaped jewel.

It sparkled in the unseen light that seemed to glow about the room, mainly coming from the crystal object itself, which seemed to pulse with an unnatural blue. Kurama didn't know quite what the object was, but he had a feeling that it was something of a family crest.

Glancing around the rest of his icy surroundings, he made his way across the large room, slipping on the floor slightly, which was carved so smoothly to perfection that it glimmered in the strange blue light. His bare feet were steadily growing numb on the floor, but he had no idea where Miyuki had taken his shoes.

Grasping with weak hands at the far door, he caught himself as he stumbled from fatigue and slippery footing. Righting himself, he peaked into the contents passed the open doorway.

Another hall stretched the length of a football field, disappearing around a corner. It, too, was all carved of ice with another intricately designed roof, patterns of ancient symbols and such lining the entire length.

A voice sounded down the hall to his right and his head snapped to the end of the hall, where shadows were forming from a dim, pale blue glow that seemed to come from the ice this time and did not pulse as the crystal had.

He quickly ducked back into the room, pressing against the wall as two young koorime girls passed by, talking quietly to one another. He gave a second glance at the one closest to him, who looked extraordinarily like his rescuer.

However, he noticed with a start that she was a tad older than Miyuki had been, and nearly half a foot taller. She was talking rather quietly of her younger sister, however, so Kurama guessed the two were tied through blood.

He stuck his head back out into the hallway as the two girls continued walking for some ways before turning off into another open doorway a few meters down. Kurama glanced around before a sudden voice behind him caused him to jump.

"What are you doing?" He spun around to see an older koorime standing before him with her hands on her hips. She had long, teal hair that reminded him of Yukina, making a small bit of his heart ache.

He would do anything at the moment to be back with his friends and Hiei.

The woman, however, was not Yukina. Kurama firmly drilled that into his head as this koorime lady had a pair of misty blue eyes, not crimson. Those eyes seemed to twinkle in the weird glow of the cavernous room.

She was wearing a loose, cottony kimono made of a deep blue fabric and swirled with an occasional light blue or even white, giving off the effect of the ocean. Kurama shook his head slightly.

"Are you alright?" the woman asked as she took a step forward. Kurama immediately countered it with a step back, coincidentally entering the hallway. "No, no, not out there! Someone might see you, you fool!"

The woman, although her voice was stern, sounded sincere in her reprimanding and she grabbed his arm and pulled him back into the room. Before he could gather the strength to object or even verbally argue, she was already pulling him across the cavern of a room and back into the fur covered walls of the bedroom he'd woken in.

"There!" she gave a huff as she pushed him down on the bed. "You don't want to go out there and get all in a mess with the others of the house, now do you? No, I didn't think so."

Kurama's head was spinning what with the woman asking and talking and answering all at the same time (and speaking of time, she certainly seemed to think little of it as she spoke a mile a minute.)

"Are you alright, deary?" the woman asked again and Kurama raised tired but firm green eyes to her.

"Who are you?" he asked, for once too drained to care about the rudeness of his speech. The lady seemed taken back for a second before she gave a warm smile.

"My name is Ritoko, Miyuki is my youngest daughter," she replied comfortingly, as if Kurama ought to have already known. The fox simply stared for a second before he nodded, closing his eyes against a sudden, and completely uncalled for attack of nausea.

"Now, now, lay down," Ritoko said as she gently lowered the fox onto the bed, covering him with another skin, this one covered in fur as he was still clutching firmly at the white one wrapped around him.

"I understand that you must be lost and tired, and more than a bit confused," she continued in a motherly voice that made Kurama feel almost at home, as if Shiori were gently comforting him. "We'll sort things out in a bit, once you're feeling a tad better. For now, you simply need to know that not all who reside in this house will welcome your presence, so it would be best to keep in here for now."

Kurama slowly nodded, wondering tiredly why he felt so sluggish and sick. Absently, in the back of his mind, Youko mentioned some long lost and forgotten bit of information about Koorime healing effects, and how they didn't always make you feel better until you'd felt worse, first.

_'But…Yukina's healing is nothing like that…' _Kurama absently thought as he heard Rikoto quietly leave, wishing some sort of farewell for the time being, but the fox wasn't fully himself.

He began to drift in and out of consciousness and feverish dreams, wondering heavily what was happening to him.

In his spaced out state, he never saw a figure wrapped in a pure white cloak refill the small cup of water sitting by his bedside.

-.-.-.-.-.-.- Nope, no more Cyclopes

OKAY, back to the weird order!

------- Seven hours prior; Amazon Rainforest, South America, Ningenkai -------

The world was a picture of purple perfection. Nothing was awry in the deep depths of the Ningenkai. No movement could be seen from any location through the purple outlook.

An occasional shudder of leaf or branch broke the silent stillness, but it quickly subsided back to its simplicity. The trees loomed above, their dark bark appearing almost black in the violet view.

The ground was thick with the fallen leaves of the many trees, creating carpeted flooring for the hot, steamy jungle. The sounds of distant birds chirped in and out of tune with one another, making an ever-changing melody ring through the vicinity.

It was a beautiful view of a flawless world.

Hiei snorted as he covered his jagan. The only thing that made it flawless and perfect for him was the lack of ningens in the dumb, stupid, ugly, hot, sticky, damn jungle that he had traced Jirinti's mind back to.

Well, except for the two panting, labored humans sitting behind him: Sitting very loudly behind him. He gave an aggravated growled under his breath as Kuwabara once again took up his somehow assigned job of team complainer.

Hiei turned sharply, every movement defining his shortening lack of patience. Yusuke caught all of this with a knowing look as Kuwabara continued ranting, seemingly oblivious to the fire demons shortening fuse.

"Hey, Kuwabara," Yusuke began, quickly deciding that he would be the better to tell Kazuma off, rather than Hiei, who might chop the man in two by the looks of it.

"What?" The orange-haired teen stopped mid rant and turned to his friend, who was sitting beside him on the floor, panting slightly from the heavy humidity and heat index.

"Please shut up." Yusuke knew that Kuwabara would be aggravated by this, but come on he ever said please!

Indeed, the teen was more than aggravated. He huffed loudly, sniffing as he said something about not wanting his attention anyways. Kuwabara then grumbled as he stood and walked off ahead, mumbling something more about going off to find Kurama rather than hang back with the "unintelligent conversationalists."

Hiei snorted, wondering if the teen had any clue what either of those words meant. Yusuke gave a sigh and stood. "Let's go, Hiei. Kurama's probably sitting in this cave wondering what's taking us so long."

The fire demon seemed to almost smirk at this, but a single, pained thought stopped him from doing so. He looked over at Yusuke with an extremely serious look. "If he hasn't passed out from blood loss yet."

Yusuke flinched as he remembered the wound that Kurama had sustained to his midsection. He gave a nod. "You're right, we'll move faster. Where did Jirinti say this place was?"

"Well…from his memory I'd say we're almost there. The dumb landmark he used to mark the cave is another three miles from here," Hiei answered as he remembered the flashes of images from Jirinti's mind, depicting the cave where he had left Kurama and the route he had taken after leaving him there.

Yusuke only nodded and doubled his pace. Hiei matched it as he took to the many hundreds of trees surrounding them. He absently heard Kuwabara moan at the speed when they caught up with him, but he ignored it.

Somewhere, deep down in the most buried parts of his mind, he knew that the orange-haired teen was worried about Kurama as much as Yusuke was. Hiei just knew that Kuwabara was a fool who said the first thing that came to his mind.

And right now that focused mostly on the heat index of whatever the godly number it was.

---------- Three Hours later : Koorime Islands; House of the Makii ----------

Cold swept through the room as Rin paced the outside hall, sweeping her flowing white robes around her with every turn. Piercing silver-blue eyes continuously glanced at the large, intricately designed double doors that separated her from her mother.

"Come on, come on," she muttered as her eyes glanced at the shadows on the ground, created by the sun filtering through the single, rectangular window carved into the wall at the end of the hall.

The shadow read half past three. With another sigh, Rin turned and began walking in the other direction, her quick strut portraying haste and impatience, two words that often held the other's meaning.

Another few minutes passed as she began to wear a traveled road in the floor beneath her booted feet. The soft leather made no sound on the ice as she spun and started in the other direction, the white cloth tunic billowing out behind her for several seconds before settling back down.

"Come on!" she growled and, as if on cue with her demand, one of the double doors creaked open. A head full of the same silvery blue hair as her eyes shot around to see a petite, tall woman walk gracefully from the room, the door gently closing behind her.

The woman was adorned in a pale blue robe, much the style of a Kimono and yet much looser around her legs, almost flowing out around her. Her robes were similar to the pacing woman except for the obi, which replaced the white sash on the other girl's.

With a soft smile, the woman greeted the enthusiastic and anxious girl that ran up to her.

"Mother, have they come to a decision?" she asked as she barely kept herself from jumping up and down in both dread and anxiety. Her mother smiled slightly, though she seemed a bit hesitant as she adjusted her robe and obi slightly.

"Almost. The truth in young Koyuki's words has already been decided. We are now convening on a course of action to right the wrong she has reported," the woman answered as she gently gripped her daughter's hand.

The girl before her seemed most upset upon these words, her brow furling into a set, worried frown. "And…what will become of Miyuki?"

The woman seemed to pause at this. After a second of thought, she offered her child another comforting smile, however small it was. "Miyuki has done wrong in performing this deed, but she did it out of the kindness of her heart. I will put in a good word for her, but she is likely to be put under house arrest."

"…And," Rin began, choosing her words very carefully. "What of the man?"

---- Same time: Plane flying…somewhere…not sure where; Author's Seat; Laptop ----

Finished! ...well, just the chapter.

And Yayayayay! I'm heading home! Finally, after three weeks away from home on an extremely fun vacation, I'm going home!

That means that I can finally update all the damn chapters I wrote!

Whoo-hoo!

((come on people, at least act happy? Please? Humor me?))

8D Anyways, I have no clue where this story is going, as said at the beginning. I finally got a rough idea half way through this chapter, but it is really rough. So hang with me (this chapter wasn't even planned; so everything's going to change. sigh)

Hope you guys enjoyed the partial-kinda-not-really-but-an-attempted Cliffhanger. Wee!

(ignore the sugar high. I think it comes from either being 10 thousand feet up or from the fact I'm going home...or maybe it's the three bottles of coke they've already given me o.o )

Oooh, and I reintroduced the ridiculous time jumping theme because so many people seemed to actually **like **it! Weirdoes.

Kit: You're calling them weirdoes, and you're the one who wrote it in the first place.

-.- Shut. Up.

Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer**: Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

(for a more serious disclaimer, please visit Chapter 1)

**Note**: This story started out as my less dramatic, more comical story. But after this chapter, the comedy mostly ends.

That's right, I have finally found a PLOT to go with this story? Didn't know I was completely winging the whole thing? Eh, wow, I was doing good then…Better lucky than good, that way you have an excuse for when you suck.

: p

So, of course, the story is dramatic, tragic, and hardly comical.

Enjoy.

-o-o-o-o-

_**Cold Rescue**_

_Chapter 4_

-o-o-o-o-

"Yusuke?"

"…Yeah?"

"…" Kuwabara bit his lip in great confusion, brow furled as he tried to find reason for the words he was about to speak. "…Is that a penguin?"

"…Yeah, Kuwabara…I think it is."

"Where the fuck are we?" Both boys turned from the black tuxedoed bird waddling past them to Hiei, emerging from the icy cave that, moments before, they had exited.

Kuwabara was shivering slightly, whether from the negative temperature or from the bird, no one quite knew. But they had gone from an index heat of Hell-knows-what to a negative cold of God-knows-what by simply stepping through a specially made portal.

"Well, this ain't no demon world," Yusuke put in helpfully, his eyes going back to the penguin, which had stopped waddling by to stare at them. Yusuke looked back to Hiei. "How the hell did we end up in the North Pole!"

Hiei's eyes narrowed dangerously as anger flared his mind. "Just another one of Jirinti's tricks. Let's go. We'll revisit him and try this again."

Yusuke and Kuwabara both shivered at Hiei's malicious tone, glancing at one another. After a moment, both gave a small sigh and followed the fire demon, who had already disappeared into the icy cave before them.

_-----Two hours after: Koorime Lands, Makai-----_

Kurama swam to consciousness and knew immediately that something was wrong. His hazy and fogged mind immediately screamed at him the one truth that was conceivable through the cloud.

He had been drugged.

The second indicator was Ritoko running around, gathering different bandages and such. Kurama blinked lazily, his eyes not half open as she ran past him, shoving several gauze rolls into a bag.

Slowly, he tried to call to her, but found his voice gone and his throat thickly closed. Kurama gave a hard swallow as he raised a leaded hand. "R-Rito-" his voice failed and he closed his eyes, swallowing as his throat began to turn sore.

The older woman turned, eyes wide at the call. "Oh dear, oh dear," she whispered, crossing over the bearskins to his bed to take his hand in both of hers. "I feared this might happen, but never so soon."

Kurama opened his mouth to try and ask, but no sound came out as his lips formed the word, "What?" Ritoko understood, however, and shook her head.

"They know you're here. The Elders, they've put my daughter under house arrest and they're coming for you as we speak!"

The kitsune's eyes widened and he tried to sit up, but Ritoko pushed him back down. "You are still injured and you seem sluggish! You cannot go on your own, but there is a secret passage through which I will lead you."

Kurama could only nod as she shoved three more things into the bag and grabbed his hand. With her aid, the fox was led to the far wall and a bearskin was pulled off, revealing a round tunnel in the ice.

The fox reached out to grab the side of the ice tunnel, about to climb in when a flash of pain ripped up his hand followed by instant numbing. His already hazy vision and leaded eyes grew heavier as he focused on his hand, only to see a metal dart sticking out of it.

Everything went black as Ritoko cried out and his legs failed beneath him.

_-----One Hour Prior: Ningenkai------_

"Yusuke?"

"…Yeah, Kuwabara?"

"…Please, please, please, tell me I'm imagining things."

Yusuke gave an annoyed, tired sigh as Hiei screamed out in frustration beside him. "First the Antarctic, now the Sahara…What the HELL is wrong with these portals!"

Hiei turned to look back at the portal they had exited, buried halfway under a sand dune with a rusting, metal sign sticking out of the sand beside it, reading, _"Welcome to the Sahara. Enjoy your Stay. Drink lots of water."_

They had turned around and gone straight through that portal in the Antarctic, but instead of arriving back in the jungle, they arrived in this new hell-hole.

"The portals," the fire demon growled out through clenched teeth, "must be programmed to alter every few minutes to a new location. Eventually…we'll end up at the portal that leads to Kurama."

"Right so…let's just keep trying then?" Kuwabara asked as he looked around the vast nothingness of never ending sand and heat.

Yusuke nodded beside him and turned, walking back to the portal as the others followed behind him.

_----Four Hours After: Koorime Land: Makai-------_

Kurama moaned as he blinked into the dimly lit world, his eyes blurry and his lids heavy. He rolled his head to the side, feeling only hard, cold stone beneath his hair. Something warm and wet was pressed against his neck and temple, and he had the feeling that it might be an explanation for the headache raging through his head.

"Hey, hey, hey, you're awake!"

The fox's eyes narrowed in pain just at the level of the voice. It was purely ecstatic with excitement and shouting in glee. Kurama groaned and rolled over, closing his eyes and pressing his forehead against the cold stone floor, trying to get his bearings.

"W-Where am I?" he managed to croak out. His throat felt raw and dry, a lack of water that had his tongue swelling in his mouth. A headache pounded in the far regions of his mind, for now a thought postponed until later when he had time to take care of the pounding pain.

Every muscle in his body felt weak and unused, or shook with overuse and exhaustion. Kurama fought to make it to his hands and knees alone, but kept his forehead pressed against the cool stone, hoping for a healing touch from its temperature.

"In the dungeons, where else!" the voice replied, chipper as before and Kurama could almost see the head that it belonged to bobbing on the shoulders in utter joy.

Something about being joyful in a prison didn't quite add up.

The fox managed to pick his head up and finally take in his surroundings. The room was small, not more than five feet long and only a few more feet wide. Everything was grey, and that word was not used in exaggeration.

The walls were peeling with dull fungi and wet with dripping water which pooled in the cracks in the floor. Some of the liquid froze against the walls and floor, creating an icy temperature and hanging icicles. The ceiling and floor, as well as all three walls, were a chalky, drab grey stone pieced together roughly and made for a rather uncomfortable stay within them.

A fourth and final wall was made up of darkly colored metal bars holding them within the confines of the prison. These bars were spaced two inches apart and dripped with coatings of ice and wallpaper made of wards.

In the corner of the cell, though not far from him due to the size of the prison, was a demon, crouched on the balls of his feet, hunched over with his arms hanging between his spread legs and smiling with squinted eyes.

His hair was a bright blonde that bordered almost on orange and swept around his head in unruly, short spikes down to the nape of his neck. Bangs fully covered his left eye, sweeping down to a point at his chin, hiding that side of his face completely. The rest of his bangs swept to the right in spiky chaos.

His right eye, and most likely his left as well, were closed in a squinted smile, his mouth spread wide in a closed grin. Long, slightly chubby fingers brushed against the floor as his arms hung, shoulders folded in slightly. His long legs swung gently in tune with his arms as he turned ever so slightly on the balls of his feet, swinging his knees out and in.

Kurama shivered in the cold temperature, his breath coming out in a steamy cloud among the icy air. His bare arms shook slightly, his bare chest bore before the freezing air of the lower dungeons of the Koorime Land, but he kept his green eyes locked on this new stranger.

His head swarmed with the pain of a cloudy, drug-induced fog that clouded his mind. A dull ache drummed through his thoughts and he raised soft fingers to rub over his temple in a repetitive motion, in hopes that he might lesson the hurt.

Kurama ran deft fingers over the back of his hand where an angry red welt had been left by the protruding dart that cost him his consciousness and gave him his pain. His eyes remained on his apparent cell mate, though his fingers scratched over the sore that oozed blood lightly.

The man rocked back on his heals, hunched back. pressing against the wall shortly as his smile faltered ever so slightly. "Ya should'n do tha', Mis'er." Kurama moved back until he could move nor farther, but the man still proceeded towards him, scooting on his crouched legs. "Here, le' me see ya'r hand."

The fox blinked, unsure of the man before him. Yet, he could sense no evil intent in the demon, for he was surely a demon, and the kitsune within him was not shouting great warnings, but exemplifying caution. Kurama slowly extended his hand to the demon.

His smile grew wider as he took the fox's limb in both his hands, turning it up and down, bending his wrist gently before he turned the hand palm down. Slowly, he ran a finger around the wounded skin, scrutinizing over it.

"I's no' tha' bad," the demon reasoned, his thick accent increasing the almost childish look he held to his face, eyes still squinted shut. "The wound was made by a dar', righ'? I don' see signs of poison, jus' irritation."

Kurama nodded slowly, a curious smile spreading slightly over his face. "Thank you," he responded, pulling his hand back as the demon released it.

"Don' mention i'," he grinned back as he spoke. "My name's Kichahakaru, bu' ya can call me Kichi." The man gave a small peace sign, his grin widening.

"I'm Kurama," the fox replied in turn as he glanced briefly around the cell once more, his hand going to his temple again.

"Does your head hur' ya?" Kichihakaru asked, tilting his head to the side and giving Kurama the odd impression of a following puppy. Shaking the feeling off, as it was quickly developing into a rather brotherly emotion towards a complete stranger, Kurama nodded slightly. "Le' me help ya, then!"

Reaching out his hand to the fox's temple, Kurama held himself still against the instinct to move away from the stranger's hand. Kichi barely brushed his fingers across Kurama's skull before he felt a warmth flood over his skin and a coolness touch his head, spreading over his forehead.

"Wha-" Kichi pulled away at Kurama's surprised response to his touch. The kitsune blinked as he raised his temples up to the cold, icy skin of his forehead, and yet the rest of him had warmed against the freezing air. "An ice demon?"

Kichi's grin remained as large, but shifted to one of confusion before he laughed lightly, chuckling. "Nah, close though!"

The demon opened his mouth to say more when the large BANG of a door echoed through the cavernous hallway outside their cell, and several footsteps followed. They were light and short, and several of them shuffled with determined age.

Both Kichi's and Kurama's gazes turned to the hallway outside as the elders of the Koorime slowly turned to face their cell. There were seven of them in total, though Kurama was unsure if they were all present.

The shortest and eldest of them stood in the center, with three on either side of her, their hair different shades of the icy blue and teal that was so accustomed to the Koorime.

The leader, her skin wrinkled with years and her body hunched with age, stared at the two of them with icy, pure blue eyes. But those glaring orbs of wisdom quickly honed in on Kurama's own green orbs.

"You…you are the man found by Kiraniri Miyuki." Kichi's right eye opened, the first time since Kurama had met him, revealing a piercing maroon, a grape-red wine orb as he glanced over at Kurama in curiosity, but not surprise.

"You will be executed with Monanuki Kichahakaru at dusk on the third night of the new solstice."

_----…I'm not even sure what time it is, though I do happen to know my location…or do I!…----_

And that's the end of Chapter 4. I hope you all enjoyed.

No author notes, so if you have any confuzzlements, let me know in a review please.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer**: …I am suddenly at a loss for all words completely…

Not good when I'm trying to write a chapter, now is it?

**Notes**: Now that I know exactly what I'm doing with this story, I'm pleased to announce that it should be rather long! Hopefully it'll be like…twenty to thirty chapters…hoping, that is.

Yay!

**Note 2**: I'm in love with Monanuki Kichahakaru. He's so fun to write!

-o-o-o-

_**Cold Rescue**_

_Chapter 5_

-o-o-o-

Kurama was quickly developing a rather severe headache, listening to his new cell mate. It was rather hilarious, really, to watch the man skip back and forth between two walls separated by five feet of ice-frosted stone.

"Lef', Lef', Lef' Righ' Lef'!"

Kurama hissed out beneath his breath as he massaged his temples between his two forefingers. Kichi seemed to notice this time (considering he'd been doing so on and off for the last three hours) and paused his dramatic skip-march to look down at his downed companion.

"Ya alrigh', Red?" he asked in his thick accent, stepping the whole two feet between them to crouch in front of the fox. "Ya don' look so good."

"You're giving me a headache!" Kurama growled lowly, keeping his eyes to the frosted floor beneath him, head propped up by the elbows on his knees.

Kichahakaru raised an eyebrow, eyes still squinted in that never ending smile of his. "Am I, now?" he asked, voice tinted with humor but amusement through apologetic tones. "Ya should'a said some'ing sooner, Red!"

The fox ignored the new nickname he had earned and just rolled his head on his neck, his cellmate rolling his head in rhythm with Kurama. "Thank you," the fox whispered in relief as he continued to rub his temples in attempt to calm the pounding pain behind his vermillion eyes.

"Ya need another dose?" Kichi asked as he slowly extended his hand, fingers outstretched to gently brush across the fox's forehead, skin icy cold. The kitsune moaned in relief as his entire head cooled beneath those deft fingertips. "Be'er, Red?"

"Much," Kurama muttered as the pain ebbed to a dull ache near the back of his neck. It was all he could do for now, considering the circumstances. After all, he was miles and miles away from his lover, his only friend seemed to be an overly-eccentric ice demon, and he was going to be executed in less than one day's time.

He'd been in tight pinches, but this was pushing even his suicidal ability to escape death over and over again.

"Good!" Kichi exclaimed rather loudly, undoing much of the work he had just done. "Oh, sorry…go'a be qui'er, I suppose!"

"That _would_ be nice."

"I can' help i', though!" he announced (quieter, thank Inari) as he began rocking on the balls of his feet, still crouched in front of Kurama, mirroring how the fox had first awoken in the cell. "We only have a few hours lef'!"

The fox didn't try to contemplate how only having hours left to live warranted this amount (or any amount at all) of excitement. It didn't make any logical sense (or any other kind of sense) at all! But, then again, after twenty-five hours with the insane man, he had quickly learned than sense had nothing to do with it.

"Is there something about death that excites you?" Kurama muttered dejectedly, his patience for this newcomer growing shorter and shorter. Kuwabara was easier to handle, for Inari's sake!

"No, bu' I'm no' gonna die, now am I?" Kichi whispered rather mysteriously, the amused tones in his voice clearly speaking for him; he knew something that Kurama obviously did not.

The fox raised his green eyes in surprise. "Do you have something planned?" he asked, tilting his head slightly as his jungle-colored orbs narrowed.

Kichahakaru just smiled, rocking to a new tune on the balls of his feet. After a moment, his bottom lip held between his teeth, he nodded his head. "Uh-huh."

Kurama straightened, picking his head off of his hands. "Really? What is it?"

Kichahakaru shook his head. "Really, now," he began, still smiling as he suddenly tilted back, letting out a small "oof" as he fell gracelessly onto his bottom, "how am I supposed'a impress ya if I tell ya my plan?"

The fox blinked, appearing as a lost or confused puppy within his expression before he rolled his eyes with a groan, his patience (which had amazingly lengthened) suddenly gone. "Impress me! Kichi, I don't want to die! The fact that you have an escape plan impresses me enough and if it works I'll be impressed enough to kiss you!"

Kichahakaru smirked almost mischieviously, releasing his bottom lip. "I'll hold ya to tha'!" he replied with much mirth as he climbed back onto his feet. "Bu' I still can' tell ya! Grea' plan, though, ya'll love i'!"

The fox just groaned and buried his head back into his hands; half hoping his friends would find him first.

-o-o-o-

Four worlds, three dead demons, two kicked penguins, four destroyed chickens, and one now unconscious dog-like creature that hissed like a snake, and Hiei, Yusuke, and Kuwabara finally emerged to a place that gave them both great hope and great fear.

"It's Kurama's blood," Yusuke reported as he stood up from the icy floor of the cave they resided in. The wall beside him told all three as much as it could of what had occurred.

The two chipping holes in the upper sections clearly stated that there had been bolts holding chains that broke with the breaking of Jirinti. The ice wall was smeared with frosting blood in one specific, circular area that suggested where Kurama had stood, pierced back against the wall.

The two puddles on the ground from where blood had dripped as the fox stood chained as well as where he had collapsed onto the ground after the chain breaking told them of about how long ago he had gotten free, followed by his condition. Drops of blood also led a trail to the icy stairwell which in turn led to the unknown world above.

"Jirinti left him here," Hiei growled lowly, his voice full of a dangerous tint. He was grinding his teeth loud enough for his fellow detectives to cringe at the noise.

"Shrimp, we gotta move quickly," Kuwabara put in, his seriousness once more fueling his brains to start up and shake the rust off of their gears. "Kurama won't survive long in this cold."

"Especially without shelter," Yusuke added in, glancing down at the clock built into his communicator. "It's been nearly a day by Rekai standards…and Makai moves slightly faster, Hiei…it will have been nearly three since Kurama was left here."

"I know," the fire demon hissed, already knowing the chances of his lover still being alive. "We know we're in the Makai, let's go figure out where."

-o-o-o-

"So, ya'r ma'e's name is Hiei?" Kichahakaru asked as he began filing down his demonic nails with a toothpick (a feet that Kurama hadn't figured out, yet.) The two had begun talking about Kurama's life, agreed by the fox if only to keep the never-still man before him quiet and, well, still.

"Yes," Kurama muttered, his fingers rising to unconsciously run over his slightly blue lips.

"Lucky man, he!" Kichahakaru smiled as the fox turned to look at him in slight surprise. The fact that this hyperactive man obviously liked the kitsune was as clear as day from night, but the truth in which Kichi didn't seem to mind his already taken companion surprised Kurama immensely.

This man before him, his cellmate and soon to be death mate, knew he was taken, accepted he was taken, wasn't trying to go after him, but still openly showed that he liked Kurama.

Yet he wasn't trying to guilt the fox, or seduce the fox, or do anything to try and interest him away from the love he held for his mate.

This Kichahakaru Monanuki was proving to be a most interesting demon (more like a brainless child.)

"Yes…" Kurama whispered once more as he dropped his hand. "I suppose he's out there looking for me…Not likely to ever find me, though."

"Ah, ya shouldn' say tha'!" Kichi suddenly exclaimed, climbing to his feet in the time span of a very eager second. "For all ya know he could be ba'ling the world righ' now ta find ya!"

And suddenly, though he couldn't quite understand why, Kurama had an urge of respect and admiration surge through him. Though both faced death, Kurama chose the path of depressed calculations, hoping to find an escape route though not daring to believe.

On the other hand, Monanuki was up and about, hopping with excitement. In truth, it was obvious that he had no idea if his plan would succeed or fail but what did it matter?

Either it would succeed and they would get out, or it would fail and they would die. He wouldn't- couldn't- know until he tried, and he wasn't about to pull back from trying just because he might fail.

In the same perspective, while there was little hope of Hiei finding him, Kichahakaru accepted the fact but pressed more belief in hoping he would. This unlikely demon acted much more human than anyone the fox had ever met.

He pushed hope in front of fact, but neither relied nor believe in either.

"I suppose he probably is," Kurama replied, a smile suddenly creeping over his angelic features. Despite the bluish tint of his skin, the fatigue in his eyes, he still remained a beautiful sight to behold.

"Tha's the spiri'!" Kichahakaru Monanuki exclaimed proudly as he fisted a hand in the air triumphantly. Kurama could only allow a small chuckle to flow out of him as he buried his head in his hands once more.

-o-o-o-

"No…fucking…way…" Yusuke whispered as all three stood on the edge of oblivion.

A mile beneath them, hidden and revealed by ever swirling clouds and drifting snow, was the lay out of all Makai.

They were on the Koorime Island.

"Holy shit!" Kuwabara suddenly exclaimed, backing away from the snow-covered, rocky shores of the island. "We're in Yukina's homeland!"

Hiei, who had been silent this entire time, turned away with a softly muttered curse. Yusuke turned to him worriedly, thankful that Kuwabara knew nothing of the connectional relationship of Hiei and Yukina.

"You alright, man?" he asked softly as the three began following the blood splatter that narrowly avoided the edge of the rocky plain. As the self-generated clouds and storms swept back and forth around the island, the entire field of snow would often disappear and give the illusion of a never ending plain of snow.

It was a wonder that the injured fox hadn't walked right off the mile-high island.

"I'm fine, Detective," Hiei hissed back, his mood having gone from foul to unapproachable over the course of the day. "It's just…" he paused, glancing over to the oblivious Kuwabara and then back with suspicious glaring to Yusuke. "If _they_ have Kurama and find out who he is…They will spare him nothing."

Yusuke shivered slightly at both the despairing as well as the venomous tones in which Hiei seemed to easily bounce back and forth from. He clasped a hand on his companion's shoulder and squeezed lightly. "We'll get him back, Hiei. Safe and sound, we'll get him back."

The fire demon could only nod as they approached the end of the blood trail.

-o-o-o-

Kurama was shivering by the time the sun began it's descent upon the icy world, though they had no other way of knowing it but for faulty internal clocks. He wrapped his arms around him tightly, but to little prevail as the cold seeped off the wall in unmerciful waves.

However, both he and his companion were unconvinced that the shivers were from only the seeping cold.

They had long ago fallen into silence, Kurama not wishing to speak of his past any further than his acknowledgement of being part demon. He and Kichahakaru had spoken for several hours about his "rude but loving" mate, Hiei. After that, however, Monanuki had politely retired from his inquisitive surveying and suggested sleep as an ulterior possibility.

There were only minutes left, now.

Kurama lay, facing the grey and icy wall before him, dull eyes slowly loosing any mirth or hope that his overly excitable companion had raised within him. As the seconds clicked by and each minute brought closer a seemingly inescapable death in his eyes, Kurama slowly began to think about everything and realize that, while not ready for death, he could accept it knowing he led a good life.

He mused briefly on how his cell mate would gasp in shock and die soon after if he could hear the desolate thoughts of the kitsune. A smile graced the fox's lips as he thought of this, and even that brought a little spark of mirth back into his eyes.

Thinking of Monanuki, oddly enough, brought back memories of Hiei and how comforting the obnoxious fire demon could be behind that rude mask of an exterior. He knew that, alike to his companion in the disagreement (but not the reaction) to his thoughts, Hiei would be angry at him for thinking everything was suddenly over; that there was no hope left.

Although the fire demon was a realist who didn't face the possibility of miracles or hope, he acknowledged that nothing was over until you were dead.

Nothing until that point is final.

And who better to know that then the fire demon that was cast from these very cliffs almost five hundred years ago. That sudden realization brought a small hint of bleak love to Kurama's mind.

He was going to be thrown from the very same cliffs that his lover had been abandoned to as a newborn.

It brought a sense of connection to his heart, even if it brought pain and sorrow to his mind.

In the darkness, with his back to his only friend in this icy world he was imprisoned to, Kurama smiled with a hint of loving insanity in the smirk as tears dripped from his despairing jungle-green eyes.

-o-o-o-

Yusuke glanced between his two companions and fellow detectives once again. Kuwabara was looking on in an almost awed expression while Hiei, on the other hand, wore a look of pure loathing disgust that bordered on being ill.

Slowly, he sunk back beneath the iced over cement they hid behind, spying on the Koorime city so near to them. Yusuke pressed his back to the ice as he sat in the snow, trying to think up as many strategies for getting in and out without detection as he could.

Of course, they were planning all this to rescue the strategist in their group, and everyone knew that as Yusuke was not the one sitting in the Koorime cell, he was obviously also not the strategist.

"They will likely hold him in the dungeons beneath the capital building," Hiei assessed as he continued staring on to the cold kingdom beyond, his red eyes ablaze with fury and disgust. "I can get there."

Kuwabara cast a sidelong glance at the fire demon. "And how would you know where it is?"

Hiei shrugged off the question with a glare sent at his companion, so fierce that it managed to shut the tallest of them up into a rather brooding silence.

"Alright," Yusuke answered, ignoring Kuwabara for the time being, "but how do we get in? We've got to grab Kurama without anyone noticing and you can't do that all by yourself!"

Hiei seemed to think about his options for some time (only seconds, really) before he shook his head. "I'll create a distraction while the two of you go get Kurama."

"What kind of distraction?" Kuwabara interrupted, his eyes narrowed slightly at the fire demon, more so in anger than in anything of real substance.

"You idiot, I'm a fire demon on an island of ice demons. What do you think I'm going to do?" he asked rather harshly, though his tones were one of a caring friend who greatly hated the one he was caring for.

However, it was Yusuke who added in his two cents with a suggestion that was coupled with a very wide grin, "Burn the hell out of the place?"

Hiei rolled his eyes, but repeated in affirmation his plan for a distraction.

"Burn the hell out of the place."

-o-o-o-

The fox woke in surprise as the door slammed open, rebounding off the wall to echo twice as loudly. He picked his head up off of his now freezing arm, skin covered in grime, ice, and goose-bumps.

Kurama was surprised to find that Kichahakaru was crouched protectively beside him, since it was his back that was open to the cell door.

The council members, the Elder Koorime, were once more standing in the open doorway, grim but satisfied looks on their aging faces. "It is time," the eldest proclaimed as four female guards filed into the room past their elders.

Two to each demon, roping their hands behind their back as Kichahakaru whispered to Kurama not to fight them. The fox relented in letting his hands be tied behind his back as both demons were escorted out of their dreary cell, following the elders leave.

They were marched through short, sharply turning hallways of pure ice and through the back ways of the many buildings that made up the city. The elders were careful to keep them either underground or within a building, never once taking them to the outside where the rest of the ice demon population could view them.

Men were not allowed on the island, and showing them off was not an idea the councilors supported at all.

Kurama was shoved forward roughly as they finally reached a pair of double doors with a faint blue light behind them. The fox knew it was the outside world, surely far away from any inhabited part of the city.

Both demons were pushed sharply through the doors and out into an even colder atmosphere. Wind whipped at their tiring, hungry bodies barely clothed for the world. Snow was swirled around them mercilessly and still they were shoved forward.

The march to the end of the island, through the bleak cold and the unforgiving snow storm was less than pleasant and hardly memorable. Kurama could not recall exactly how long they were forced to march (barefoot in his case) through the piling, ever shifting snow. All he remembered was the occasional whisperings of his cellmate, who skipped along behind him as if going off to greet a visitor rather than his death.

But he supposed those were what kept his feet from freezing off, his legs from filling with led, or his mind from stopping the instructions it sent to his body. Those whisperings continually mentioned his fire demon's name and how the hiyoukai was coming for him, so he just had to hold on.

How Kichahakaru maintained his able mind in such proceeds was beyond Kurama's wondering thoughts, the fox's body still affected by multiple unhealed wounds, medicines, and depressed despair. His mind drifted in and out of reality and truth, seeking a place to hide from the imminent fate that loomed just beyond the snowing clouds.

When they reached the final pier, the one cliff jutting out further than the surrounding shores of the islands, Kurama was certain that dying in the place where his lover was born wasn't so bad.

And while the hyper soul beside him kept a remembrance of hope to his every doubtful mind, his despairing eyes clearly told that he had accepted his fate and had no faith in the escape planned.

-o-o-o-

Okay, chapter done with!

I know it's not as long as you might have hoped, but I wasn't sure what else to do with it. I wrote this all in one night, so I really wanted to wrap it up, which is probably why the end seemed a bit rushed.

It was four o'clock in the morning when I finished it and now I can't seem to do anything other with it.

Sorry!

Anyways, Hope everything else was enjoyable about it!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer**: … T.T I don't wanna say it.

**Notes**: Okay, so this is where the story takes a turn and starts to get more serious. So, less comedy (if anyone actually finds my lame jokes funny) and more tragedy (okay, I know I can write a sad story – so you can't tell me something isn't sad!)

But have no fear – Kichahakaru will still be there. 8-)

No other notes just enjoy!

Oh, and thank you everyone who reviewed, you continue to serve me –ahem- I mean encourage me greatly!

-o-o-o-

_**Cold Rescue**_

_Chapter 6_

-o-o-o-

"Don' worry, Red."

Kurama head those words echo through his head but made no move to respond as he stared at the ground more than a mile below. The green dotted earth far below was often blotted out by the quickly shifting clouds that swirled up around the floating island.

He would be meeting that ground up close and personal soon.

Kichahakaru stood beside him, still rocking gently on the balls of his feet as he hummed a small tune to himself. Kurama was trying desperately not to be infuriated with his companion's obvious contentment in death.

"Please explain to me _again_, why I shouldn't be worried about my imminent death?" Kurama muttered through tightly clenched teeth, held in such by frustration. His fists were clenched as the wind whipped around them, threatening to send them off the mile-high mountain before the Koorime elders could.

"Cuz ya'r no' gonna die!" Kichahakaru said excitedly for, perhaps, the tenth time since they left their pathetic excuse for a prison. Yet every time he said it, Kurama seemed to lose even more faith in it.

This overexcited child of a demon could not possibly come up with a plan for escape where even Kurama failed.

Although, sometimes it takes a child's imagination to create what even an adult can't dream.

"Kichi…just tell me the plan," Kurama ground out. He could hear the elders behind him, their leaders speaking in harsh terms, shouting them out over the wind.

That was the same hag that had condemned Hiei.

Why the hell was someone so old still alive? Kurama decided there should be a law against allowing ugly hags to live past their prime.

"Nah!" the odd demon insisted on keeping his little secret to himself. "I'll be wan'ing tha' kiss and I can' ge' i' if I don' impress ya!"

Kurama briefly wondered if his headache would cease if he jumped off right now.

No, Kichahakaru would probably follow after him.

And talk all the way down to their deaths, too.

The Elder behind them was condemning them, reading them their last words as they prepared to be executed by fall rather then hanging or shooting – things that have more chance of rescue.

"Kichi, _please_," Kurama whispered, standing beside the demon. Their backs were to the world, the redhead staring at the ground disappearing and reappearing below the clouds, and the blonde staring up at the clouds that rolled past.

"Alrigh', Red," the man finally said, turning to look with a squinty-eyed smile. "I'll tell ya, bu' I be'er ge' my kiss!"

Kurama gave him a small, weak smile. He wasn't sure if he should be relieved or seeking a heavier headache medicine.

Kichahakaru opened his mouth, fully ready to explain his plan in quiet terms, even as the Elder behind them wound down her speech.

But if any sound ever left his mouth, it was drowned out by the sudden explosion of noise.

Heat swept over them as a mixture of combusting buildings, screams, and a rumbling that ripped through the air. Kurama turned towards the blast as the wave of immense heat and energy slammed into them.

He and Kichahakaru stumbled right over the edge of the icy island.

-o-o-o-

Yusuke gave himself enough of a pause to let out a low whistle at the destruction Hiei reaped. The icy build of the towering homes and buildings was melting under the sudden oppression of flames.

He was doing more than burn the hell out of the place.

He was _making_ hell out of the place.

Kuwabara yelled at him and Yusuke snapped out of his awe as the fire demon walked through the city, burning everything but killing no one. The raven haired detective turned and ran after Kuwabara, both heading in the direction of the building Hiei said Kurama would be kept in.

_"That's their Council building, where the Elders will decide his fate. He'll be kept under it, in cells they have there."_

_"And how the hell do you know all this, shrimp?" Kuwabara had asked with narrowed eyes. "Only Koorimes can be here."_

_"You're here, aren't you, you big bafoon?"_

_"Why you little-"_

They didn't have long, as Hiei said. They wouldn't wait for a fair trial as in ningenkai, or even a semi-fair trial that the normal Makai would offer. The Koorimes would not allow the rest of the city to see a man, and so they would be rid of him soon.

Yusuke prayed they weren't too late as the two ran through the panicking, burning city. They dodged a young woman, who screamed when she saw them and grabbed onto her child.

"They really do think we're here to kill them," he muttered as he sadly shook his head. What misguided people.

Ahead of him Kuwabara slammed through the wooden, ornate doors to the council building, stumbling in after his sudden power release. Yusuke jumped over the unhinged door to follow, pushing the second open as it bounced off the wall in Kuwabara's over-zealous attack.

"Find stairs!" Yusuke shouted to his companion as the two began kicking open every door they could find, searching for the way down to the cells where their friend would be kept. He only prayed they hadn't done anything to him.

"I can't believe this all started with fucking Jirinti!" Kuwabara cursed as he came out of another room with nothing but screaming women who had tried to ice his ass. They were lucky – all the guards were busy dealing with Hiei's little mess.

"I'm gonna do worse than Hiei did when we get back!" Yusuke swore as he kicked opened a door and stopped when his heart leapt to his throat. "I found them, Kuwabara!"

Without waiting for his friend's response, he started down the stairs, taking leaps and bounds over them to get down as fast as he could. Every second could count in this situation, he didn't know what was happening and being a minute late could mean Kurama's life or death.

They hit the floor one after the other, pausing only to glance around.

It was a maze of different doors.

"Great, couldn't make this fucking easy, could they?" Yusuke cried out in annoyance, kicking open a door…

And dodging an ice attack. He slammed the door shut and locked it with a kekkai barrier.

"If any more of them attack me I'm gonna have to start kicking their ass!" he cursed out, kicking open another door to reveal a long cooridor that was icy and cold. There was wind coming down it in brief, frozen gusts and he assumed it lead somewhere outside.

Not that one.

"Urameshi!" Kuwabara squawked indignantly. "We can't fight girls!"

"You're 'manly' honor won't stop them from kicking our asses!" he ground out as he kicked open another door, watching his friend take the others. They were nearly out of doors when Kuwabara cried out and Yusuke ran over to him.

He had kicked open a door that led to a long line of cells, devoid of anyone to guard them. Thinking it odd, but attributing it to detaining Hiei who seemed to be drawing everyone's attention, as planned, Yusuke bounded in after Kuwabara.

They gripped the metal bars of every cage, wishing to gods that a fox would appear there. They screamed out his name, listening to the echoes that shot back at them. The place was grimy and cold and, as they feared most, very empty.

"Shit!" Kuwabara screamed, slamming a fist into the wall. "Where the hell is he?"

-o-o-o-

Kichakaru was, for one of the few times in his life, panting heavily both in the sudden exertion of energy as well as sudden panic. But he looked down at the body hanging limp in his arms and let out some of the tension.

He wasn't sure how, but he'd managed to catch the fox…though he really wasn't sure what made Red unconscious…or for that matter, what the hell had just happened. The odd demon was rather annoyed, which was a rare occurrence in its own right, because his perfect escape plan had not gone so perfectly.

Being blown off the edge of the mountain (while awesomely cool!) had not been part of his plans, though he was rather upset he hadn't thought of the idea himself. But whoever had up there couldn't be identified as friend or foe.

Of course, the enemy of your enemy is your friend, but if you turn it around, the friend of your friend does not necessarily mean they're your friend.

And while that made perfect sense to Kichi, leaving the rest of us in the dust, he nodded in affirmation – that piece of wisdom had led him to the most obvious conclusion: they had to get off the island as planned.

Kichahakaru looked to his hand, which was frozen to the bottom of the Koorime island, only a few meters off of the edge Kurama and he had been blasted off. He meant to walk right off with the fox, freezing his feet to the bottom of the island so they could literally walk off the top of the island and keep walking on the underside.

Of course, being blasted ten feet off instead of being able to just take one step had seriously altered his plans and given him quite the work out. After all, it wasn't easy turning ten feet of air condensation between him and the mountain (and Kurama, which factored in another few feet) into pure ice and praying they pieced together strong enough to hold them.

It had been one hell of a risk.

Kichahakaru couldn't help but smile, though. It had worked, despite the risk, and he would be getting that kiss from Kurama when they got to the ground.

The smile fell from Kichi's face.

Oh yeah, he had forgotten about the mile high bit.

Shrugging, he hefted Kurama over his shoulder as he hung from the bottom of the ice mountain, one arm and both feet firmly iced to the snow covered rock. "Alrighty-then," he declared as he glanced down at the tossing clouds hundreds of feet below. "This should be interesting!"

And with another explosion that wracked the entire structure of the island, causing it to rumble and shake dangerously, Kichahakaru let go.

-o-o-o-

"What do you mean, _you don't know_?" Hiei asked, his voice laced with rage and hate as he gripped the edge of the elder's kimono. She stood proud, despite her lack of height on the demon, being as short as she was.

"You heard me, Forbidden One," he croaked once more, her voice holding more frostbite than the air around them. Yusuke glared harshly at the old woman, though Kuwabara couldn't bring himself to form an angry expression towards a woman – no matter the age. "And if I'd known he was of such importance to you, I would have thrown him off the Island myself."

Hiei's fists clenched and he raised it to hit her. The elder's chin raised in pride – showing she would not back down. The fire demon growled and lowered his fist, ignoring Kuwabara's indignant squeaks. "You fucking old hag."

Yusuke watched with a mixture of relief and pride as the hiyoukai turned from her, she who had condemned him to death as an infant and who threatened his lover and mate, and walked away. They followed their teammate without question; both of the taller detectives made sure the Koorime elder did nothing in retaliation.

"What now?" Kuwabara asked shakily. He wasn't too sure of the answer he would receive or the tones he would receive it in.

"They were preparing to throw him off the mountain," was the tight-laced reply. "It is possible he was thrown from it during the explosions."

Yusuke tried not to wince at the almost emotionless response, though he could hear the strain the fire demon was holding in his tone. "Hiei-"

"He has plants that can help him fly, Yusuke," Hiei bit out quickly. He didn't like the detective's sympathetic tones. "He's not dead – I know he isn't. I would know…I would…"

Kuwabara watched as the fire demon before them began to crumble inside his icy walls. Uncharacteristically of him, he suddenly put an arm around Hiei's shoulder. "Cheer up, Shrimp. Kurama doesn't die easy – if we know one thing about him, that would be it. So come on, let's get off this chip of ice and go find him."

Hiei, surprised and somewhat repulsed (on the finest of levels) by the human contact, might have possibly replied with something less than a bitter and angry tone…if the big oaf had learned when to stop his big mouth.

"Of course, it's a beautiful chip of ice! Any land of which my precious Yukina was birthed to is more beautiful than-"

Yusuke laughed as Hiei all but threw Kuwabara off of him, threatening to show him the short route to the ground. The orange-haired detective proceeded in attempting to tackle Hiei out of retaliation.

He failed miserably.

And while it seemed an inner happiness for but a moment in time, Yusuke's smile soon vanished. His friends' playful banter only reminded him that one of them was missing.

And he prayed to every god he had never believed in that Kurama had made it to the ground safely.

**-o-o-o-**

**End Chapter 6**

**-o-o-o-**

Well, that's the wrap for that chapter!

Sorry for taking so long to update! Life has been hectic and, while I had most of this chapter written out, it got tucked away and took me far to long to find and finish it!

Sorry all, and I hope you enjoyed!

**Author's Notes**

…_He and Kichahakaru stumbled right over the edge of the icy island…_ Haha! Oh the irony of it all! Yes, Kurama was knocked off the island by Hiei's explosion!

…_kicked open a door…There was wind coming down…it lead somewhere outside…Not that one…_ Yes, more irony! That was the door the Koorimes had led Kurama and Kichahakaru down to walk to the edge of the island.

_Kichahakaru's Powers_: it was hard to explain, as I found out. He has the ability to alter the temperature of things around him. To save himself and Kurama, he used the water in the air and froze it together, forming a thick piece of ice that clung to him and Kurama. By melting it slowly at certain parts, he created a sort of rope that pulled them back into the island.

_Kichahakaru's Initial Escape Plan_: He was going to grab Kurama and walk off the island. By freezing the air around his feet to the island beneath his feet, he would have created a sort of "cling" shoe that allowed him to walk across the bottom of the island.

_Getting to the Ground_: haha…ha…ha…Something he hasn't planned quite yet and I'm not telling if they make it or not!

Stick around for next chapter! Hopefully it'll be out sooner than this one was!


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